When Principles No
Longer Suffice: NAMFREL and the 2013 Elections in the Lens
of an Intern

(Editor's note: Ruth was one of NAMFREL's 8
interns from UP Manila for the 2013 elections. She
was joined by Via Cabatu, Kristine Cardona, Joana
Castro, Eliana Cortes, Fatima del Rosario, Karel
Galang, and Roma Monzon.)

There is no greater volunteerism than that of
protecting democracy itself.

As Political Science students, the main objective of
the practicum was for us to see the dynamics of
theory and practice. Our usual curriculum allowed
200 hours spent in either a government or
non-government office, if not in a far-flung area
for immersion trips.

Since it was election season, the Department of
Social Sciences (DSS) of UP Manila preferred to have
us spend the full 200 hours in a nongovernment
organization or in an immersion. In the past
academic years, the students were given a hundred
hours for both government and nongovernment
organizations. The feedback we received from the
upper batch, however, was usually of warning rather
than encouragement. We feared having to succumb into
clerical work, or worse, being told to make coffee
instead of reports.

Ruth (second row, first from right), with the
other trainees and volunteers)

“You will not be used as accessories. We will treat you as part of the staff,”
Mr. Paolo Maligaya, NAMFREL Senior Operations Associate, told us during our
orientation. We could only muster a sigh of relief. And after that, what started
as a practicum became pure volunteerism.

In the Spirit of Volunteerism

Our first NAMFREL experience was during the NAMFREL National Assembly in March
2013. The election season marked the commencement of NAMFREL’s six projects:
Voters’ Education Program (VEP), Voters’ List Monitoring (VLM), Mobile
Pollwatching (MPW), Logistics Tracking (LT), Electoral Finance (EF), and Random
Manual Audit Monitoring (RMAM). Since there were eight of us in the practicum,
three were assigned to the project teams, and the other five to the different
regional desks. I was assigned to the Mobile Pollwatching project, which was
under NAMFREL National Council member Mr. Dammy Magbual’s supervision. Thus, I
was thrust not only in monitoring the project but also in sending memos and
making statements. Although I was not directly in contact with NAMFREL’s
chapters as much as the regional desk officers were, I had to make sure that
their concerns were addressed adequately.

Our first day in the office marked our first meeting with Mr. Telibert Laoc,
NAMFREL National Council member, now known to us for his favorite catch-phrase,
“Your success is our success.” He did live up to it, anyway. If anything, we
were treated as equals. Our opinions always counted, and our suggestions always
mattered. Never could we find another organization that will treat novice
election observers, rather trainees or interns, as important as NAMFREL did.
After less than a week of being integrated in the office environment and work,
we
began our 8 a.m.-8 p.m. shift – not because it was required, but because we,
ourselves, wanted to do so.

The workload increased exponentially. We did not complain because it was the
first time that we felt what we were doing actually mattered – how a single
unanswered phone call can discourage a chapter, how a simple encouraging memo
can ignite the spirit of our field volunteers, and how a minimal mistake in
reporting the details of an event can put disgrace upon NAMFREL’s reputation.

In the middle of our practicum, we realized that we were near to exceeding the
required number of hours, and we were expecting a five-day shift on election
week. But the requirement no longer applied. We continued our 8 a.m.-8 p.m. work
hours, and we would even exceed until 10 p.m., up to the point that some of the
staff already offered to transform our working area into a dormitory.

Even half-way through our practicum, we were no longer interns. Instead, we
vowed to continue working, but now as volunteers. For all we knew, we were doing
something that we learned to love in the span of less than a month. What we
gained from it materially was not of any importance. All good things came
afterward.

From Principles to Dynamics

We knew the basic principle of election: voting for
people who will be vested with enormous powers to
lead the country. By virtue of the elections, our
political leaders become accountable to the
populace. As such, it becomes the greatest
foundation for good governance. The principles were
very clear; the dynamics, however, were yet to be
identified.

We knew how the elections worked in face value.
Whatever happens beyond the surface are mere
accounts that we could read or hear elsewhere. But
to verify information and to be in contact with
NAMFREL’s local chapters enabled us to have a
clearer image of what really happens during
elections. It is to our utmost dismay to find that
the very foundation of our democracy can no longer
be relied upon. But this does not mean that we
should lose faith in the system. Rather, it is
NAMFREL’s duty to ensure that it will be improved.

Vote buying, electoral violence, use of government
resources, threat and intimidation, biased media
reports, private armies – we can learn all these
through the news. But what would it feel like if you
talked to someone from Mindanao, reporting to the
National Headquarters, in the middle of a
cross-fire? What would it feel like if you talked to
someone who is reporting about vote buying
activities, but reminds you to keep his/her
anonymity for safety reasons? What if you learned
that field volunteers already fear for their safety
because candidates can identify if they are members
of NAMFREL?

The volunteers knew the risks that their job
entailed. They knew the sacrifices they were about
to make. But as Mr. Lester Toribio, chair of NAMFREL
Manila chapter said in one of our meetings, “Kung
hindi tayo, sino?”

The election was both important and vulnerable, and
it always will be – that is why election watchdogs
exist.

The 2013 Elections was the best stage to observe the
interplay of civil society, government, and COMELEC.
NAMFREL may have exposed truths about the
unreliability of PCOS machines, but it was never our
intention to defame the elections. In fact, it was
our intention to make them more transparent and
reliable. We may have exposed realities of vote
buying activities in almost every part of the
Philippines, but it was never out intention to
dispense the importance of voting.

NAMFREL may have exposed many truths and realities
to the point of risking its accreditation, but never
did it waver from its mandate.

As UP students, we have always been reminded to give
back to the country. When and in what manner was up
to our discretion. NAMFREL provided us that
opportunity. It was an office, with a network of
field volunteers that we gradually learned to treat
as our family.

To the local chapters who may have wondered who we
were in the beginning, we have offered you our time
and dedication, and it would be more than an honor
to know if we have done justice to your sacrifices.

To the National Headquarters, we express our
gratitude for accommodating us, for treating us as a
real staff, and for trusting us in handling the big
responsibility of monitoring the projects and
communicating with the local chapters. Although you
may repeatedly tell us that we have been a big help,
I believe that the favor is still ours to return. We
owe you our experience, our knowledge, and our
newfound opportunities.

We may have sacrificed sleep, and we may have
acquired deeper eye bags for that matter. We may
have had arguments with some local chapters, and we
may have faltered a little. We may have been drained
of energy and we may have struggled. But we have
stood our ground. All this, motivated by a simple
question: “Kung hindi tayo, sino?”